‘Feeling Irregular Inside’: Easter (Resurrection Sunday)
Whether you are a child, young adult, middle aged, or elderly— most of us are accustomed to our own tradition of Easter (Resurrection Sunday). Some would’ve attended church today in celebration, others would’ve had egg hunting and feasting with family and friends, and some may have just enjoyed a comfortable day. This year, things are slightly different, and some may say this Easter (Resurrection Sunday) is irregular. We are all inside today, it feels irregular, and we are all adjusting our common celebration to comply with confusion.
Well, the good news is that the first Easter (Resurrection Sunday) had similar elements. There was no pestilence in the air, but there was pain. Both of our people were confused, uncertain, conflicted, and maybe even angry. Just as I look outside my bedroom window, both Sunday mornings have been closely similar too: dreary, bleak, cloudy, and empty. Now yeah, I know you know what happens next.. Women appeared to the tomb, it was rolled away, Jesus appeared to them and declared He has risen!
But stay with me, there’s more to this story.
In my Bible, John 20:19 (NLT) states:
“It was late Sunday evening, and the disciples, were gathered behind locked doors, because they were afraid of the Jewish authorities”.
Even on the day of man’s greatest triumph, the disciples were trapped inside as well. It was now uncommon for them to not be with their teacher, and they were overcome with fear being inside dealing with conflictions and confusion of recent events. The dysfunction of their world was defying the odds of the common, and winning. That’s where many of us are today.
This Easter (Resurrection Sunday) we are trapped. By now, it may have been noticed my consistent placement of Resurrection Sunday in parenthesis, commonly used as a mark off (trap) to give explanation to an afterthought. As this pandemic has overcome Easter Sunday with animosity, I am hopeful we do not let the Resurrection become a mere afterthought. Before resurrection was supposed to be Satan’s trap, his victory. Fortunately death did not trap Jesus, but He trapped death, His victory. (Steven Furtick did a sermon on this, its quite good).
The Resurrection of Jesus has three components:
- undoing of a past event
- uncertainty of a present reality
- unbelievable potential for future moments
Mark 16:12 (NLT) reminds us: “Afterward, Jesus appeared to them in a different form.”
In the coming days, months, and possibly years it may be difficult for us to accept any new regular. However, we have to remember even when Jesus was trapped, he rose again and did not appear the same to those who knew him from his past; but appeared in a new form to move the future forward.
I hope that this message may provide you with an irregular interpretation on a day we enjoy so commonly and regularly. Your plans today may be different this Easter than any of the past and the future, but the purpose of this day should be remembered the same.
-In his Grace, Cagen